I remember mom saying she likes a small, cute dog for a pet. Lucky for her, that wish comes true when one of my cousins once had a few dogs to sell. One summer of 2013, dad decided to buy a shih tzu dog from this cousin. I remember clearly how this dog is well behaved while we transport him. I have a strong feeling that he's very nice right from the start. When we arrived at home, one of my nieces, LJ named this cutie, Marky. She keeps on calling him Marky until this cutie was able to memorize his name. Since then, he would respond each time he hears his name even in situations when we just talk about him and we're not calling him.

Marky's Behavior

I heard that shih tzus are very tamed and friendly. Marky shows that behavior. In fact, he's the nicest dog we ever had in history, unbelievably nice. You would always see him relaxing and he's very quiet. In his entire stay with us, he never bit anyone and he didn't even bark on anyone. He's not biting objects and he doesn't pee on them too. He never destroyed a single thing in our house. When bathing, he's well behaved and he would raise his foot because he knows that you'll clean his paws. The most amazing thing about Marky is that he's able to build friendships among people and fellow animals.

Marky's Squad

It's amazing how Marky was able to build friendship with his squad. Aside from fellow dogs, he loves to hangout with cats too. He's very happy to play and sleep with them. Whenever he sees a new face, he would go near that cat and turn it into his friend. Kind of unusual for a dog. Guess what? Here's another unusual friendship he has made.

Yes, a bunny! We used to have a bunny for a pet. Dogs are some of the predators of rabbits. But Marky is an exemption. This bunny is Caleb. One time, our maid told me that she tried to let Caleb in our kitchen to play with Marky while I was away. Too bad I wasn't able to see them together that time. She said Marky was so happy and excited that time while Caleb is just chilling. He really loves to have playmates. One time, I learned that rabbits are sociable animals too and they easily get bored when they're alone so I let him visit Caleb in his cage so he won't get bored. They just sniff on each other as they relax for a while. I'm amazed that Caleb did not feel that Marky is a predator. Marky did not act like one either. He's like a kid who gets happy when he has a playmate to hangout with.

In Sickness and in Health

Marky is a joyful dog who loves to socialize with people and other animals. That's his hobby when he's in good health. During the month of May, he got very ill. He developed gallbladder stones that gave him pain especially when urinating. It also gave him a hard time walking. Those stones developed because of his diet. We started to consistently feed him dog food since that incident, no more human foods anymore. I feel so sad seeing him suffering like that. Good thing his surgery was successful. He still behaved well and you can see that he likes it when his suture wound is being treated. He would stay still while he's being treated. I don't ever want to see him get sick like that. He went back to his old energetic self again when he recovered and I feel happy for him. Because of his extremely nice behavior, they let him stay in our house and I think it will be for good since they did not cage him outside our house even when he has fully recovered. He stays in the kitchen and sleeps with us every single day.

Some of Marky's moments with us

Marky is so friendly that even strangers can approach him. He loves to ask for belly rubs from anyone, either from a stranger or from us. When you start to pet him, he will lie and ask for a belly rub. That's ultimately his favorite.

Remember LJ? The one who gave him his name. Her older sister, Arianna used to fear dogs before. But Marky's kindness took away the fear and now she became very close to him. She started to take charge of him. She loves him so much that she gave him a stuffed toy to play with. Marky loves the toy so much that he won't give it away to anyone. My niece can't even take it back unless she tricks him.

The last photo is my bed. Yes, Marky is allowed to enter our rooms now. He's the only pet in history who's allowed to stay in our rooms. He experienced sleeping in my dad's room, Arianna's room and my room. Look how happy he is while he's owning my bed. He deserves all the pampering for being such a good boy. Personally, he is my favorite among our pets and the closest to me. I miss him dearly since I moved to a new place. I will visit him and send my hugs when I visit my family next month. His kindness really touched our hearts and it adds to his cuteness. In return, we make sure that he's living a good and a happy life with us. We love you Marky, the good boy of the century. May you live a long life.